Online IOP for College Students and Emerging Adults in MA & VT
Admission
We begin by getting to know you: what you are struggling with, what treatment you have tried, what has helped and what hasn't, and whether Austen Riggs may be the right next step.
Admission Begins with a Conversation About Fit
The admission process is designed to assess fit. The central questions are whether the person's difficulties can be understood and worked with in an open, voluntary residential setting, and whether the patient has enough motivation or curiosity to participate in the work.
If Riggs is not the right setting, we will say so—and, when possible, help think about what kind of care may fit better.
Online Information Series: Understanding the Austen Riggs Center Treatment Approach
Join us for a free, live online information session about the Austen Riggs Center—our open therapeutic community, our approach to intensive psychiatric treatment, and how the admission process works.
A First Call is Not a Commitment
Admission begins with a conversation. You, a family member, or a referring clinician can call to describe the situation, ask questions, and begin to consider whether Riggs may be the right setting.
Is Austen Riggs the Right Setting?
Austen Riggs provides residential psychiatric treatment for adults 18 and older whose difficulties have often persisted despite serious prior treatment. Treatment is centered on intensive psychodynamic psychotherapy, community life, and the patient’s growing capacity to take responsibility for their life and treatment.
Riggs is an open, voluntary residential treatment setting. That means the admission process must consider not only diagnoses or symptoms, but whether the person can make use of treatment in a setting that depends on collaboration, curiosity, and some capacity to participate voluntarily.
Riggs may be worth considering when someone is struggling with complex psychiatric difficulties, recurrent crises, treatment impasses, relational patterns that repeat, unclear diagnosis, or symptoms that have not changed enough through prior treatment alone.
If Riggs seems like a possible fit, the next step is a conversation with Admissions. The process is designed to clarify the current situation, review prior treatment, and determine whether the six-week residential evaluation and treatment is likely to help.
The Austen Riggs Admission Process
The admission process is designed to assess whether the six-week residential evaluation and treatment is likely to help, whether the open voluntary setting is appropriate, and whether the patient is ready enough to begin the work.
First call
A conversation about the current situation, prior treatment, and what has led you to consider Riggs.
Clinical review
Admissions staff review the history and, when possible, speak with current providers.
Consultation
A more focused discussion about whether the six-week residential evaluation and treatment is likely to help. Consultations are often scheduled within a week of receiving referral information.
Admission planning
If Riggs is the right setting, admission can often occur within about a week after consultation. The team helps plan timing, travel, cost, communication, and arrival.
Why Fit Matters at Riggs
Riggs is not a locked hospital, a behavior-management program, or a retreat. It is an open, voluntary setting where treatment depends on the patient’s participation, relationships, and willingness to become curious about what has been difficult to change.
Because of that, admission is not simply a matter of whether someone has a particular diagnosis or level of distress. The question is whether Riggs can provide the right kind of treatment environment at the right time.
In the admission process, we consider:
- What the person is struggling with now
- What treatment has already been tried
- What has helped, what has not, and what remains unresolved
- Whether the person can participate in an open, voluntary setting
- Whether there is enough motivation or curiosity to begin
- Whether the six-week evaluation and treatment is likely to clarify next steps
- What role family members, referring clinicians, or other supports may play
Campus Tour
Join us on a tour of the Austen Riggs Center. You’ll see patient residences along with treatment and community spaces on our one-of-a-kind open setting campus located on Main Street in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.
The Six-Week Residential Evaluation and Treatment
Most patients begin with a six-week period of intensive residential evaluation and treatment. This is not a passive assessment period. It is treatment from the beginning.
During the six weeks, patients participate in intensive individual psychotherapy, psychiatric and medical assessment, psychological testing, therapeutic community life, and a formal clinical case conference. The goal is to develop a fuller understanding of the person’s difficulties and to determine what kind of treatment plan is most likely to help.
For some patients, the six-week evaluation leads to a recommendation for continued treatment at Riggs. For others, it clarifies that another level or kind of care may be a better fit.
Planning for Admission
Admission involves more than clinical fit. These resources explain how families and clinicians may be involved, what to know about cost and insurance, how to prepare for arrival, and what it means to enter treatment in Riggs’ open, voluntary setting.
For Families and Referring Clinicians
Families, loved ones, and referring clinicians often play an important role in the admission process. A family member or clinician may make the first call, help provide history, or participate in discussions about whether Riggs may be appropriate.
With the patient’s authorization, Admissions may speak with current clinicians to better understand prior treatment, current risk, diagnosis, medications, family or relational concerns, and the questions that need to be clarified in treatment.
Cost, Insurance, and Financial Planning
The cost of residential treatment depends on the program, length of stay, and level of services provided. Admissions will talk with you openly about fees, payment policies, insurance coverage, and, when applicable, need-based financial assistance.
Cost is part of the admission conversation because entering residential treatment requires planning. The team helps patients and families understand the financial commitment before admission.
Preparing for Admission
If Riggs is the right setting and admission is offered, the Admissions team helps plan the practical details, including timing, travel, communication with clinicians or family members, cost, and arrival.
Patients and families often have questions about what to bring, what Riggs provides, and what the first day is like. These questions are addressed during admission planning.
Patient Rights and the Open Setting
Austen Riggs is an open, non-restrictive treatment environment. Patients are not coerced to behave in a particular way and are not compelled to participate in treatment. There are no privileges to earn and no forfeiture of freedom.
This openness is central to the Riggs treatment approach, but it also carries responsibilities and risks. Patients must be able to maintain behavior compatible with an open hospital setting. If a patient enters a period of unacceptably high risk or needs a more restrictive level of care, transfer to another setting may be appropriate.
The Austen Riggs Patient Rights Policy protects patients’ fundamental human, civil, constitutional, and statutory rights in accordance with federal and Massachusetts law.
Admission Frequently Asked Questions
Is calling Admissions a commitment to treatment?
No. A first call is not a commitment. It is a conversation about the current situation, prior treatment, questions about Riggs, and whether the admission process should continue.
Who can contact Admissions?
A prospective patient, family member, loved one, or referring clinician can contact Admissions. With the patient’s authorization, Admissions may also speak with current providers.
What does the admission process assess?
The admission process assesses fit, readiness, and whether the person’s difficulties can be understood and worked with in an open, voluntary residential setting. It also considers whether the patient has enough motivation or curiosity to participate in treatment.
How long does admission take?
Timing varies. Consultations are often scheduled within a week of receiving referral information. If Riggs is the right setting, admission can often occur within about a week after consultation, depending on clinical fit, readiness, records, logistics, and bed availability.
What happens if Riggs is not the right setting?
If Riggs is not the right setting, the Admissions team will say so and, when possible, help think about what kind of care may fit better.
Is Austen Riggs a locked hospital?
No. Riggs is an open, voluntary residential treatment setting. Patients are not locked in or compelled to participate in treatment. This is why the admission process carefully considers whether the open setting is appropriate.
What is the first step in treatment at Riggs?
Most patients begin with the six-week residential evaluation and treatment, which helps clarify diagnosis, treatment needs, and whether continued treatment at Riggs is recommended.
Does Austen Riggs accept adults only?
Yes. Austen Riggs provides treatment for adults 18 and older.
Former Patient Stories
News
Removing the Mask: Kate Washington, Austen Riggs Former Patient, 2008 – 2010
September 23, 2025
Austen Riggs former patient Kate Washington reflects on her time in treatment at Riggs and what she learned.
News
A Personal Perspective on Psychiatric Treatment at Austen Riggs
March 2, 2023
Austen Riggs Alumnus Mashuq Mushtaq Deen describes his path to Riggs, his treatment experience, and how that impacted his life.
News